Thursday, April 25, 2013
Final hearing on a 4.1 percent increase for state's second largest utility
The sixth and final hearing on a request for a rate increase by the state’s second largest utility company met with a mix of praise and criticism for Jersey Central Power & Light Wednesday at Freehold Township’s Town Hall. JCP&L, fresh off widespread criticism for its handling of Hurricane Sandy and the Nor’easter that followed, is seeking a 4.1 percent increase in the rates it charges its 1.1 million customers – many of whom were without power for up to two weeks after this winter’s storms. The Morristown-based company, the main power supplier in Monmouth, Ocean and Morris counties, is seeking to recoup the $630 million it spent on repairs following Sandy. It has petitioned the state regulatory board -- the Board of Public Utilities -- …
Wednesday, April 24, 2013
Utility company petitioning state board for consumer rate increase
The state Board of Public Utilities is scheduled to hold a pair of hearings on Wednesday on a proposed rate increase for Jersey Central Power & Light (JCP&L). The first meeting is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. at the Freehold Township Municipal Building, at Schanck and Stillwell Corner roads. The second meeting is set for 6:30 p.m. at the same location. The utility company, roundly criticized for its response during Hurricane Sandy and the nor’easter that followed, wants a rate increase of 4.5 percent in its effort to raise $603 million the company says it needs to repair infrastructure damaged in hurricane’s Sandy and Irene. The company faces opposition. "We will speak for the hundreds of ratepayers who are tired of paying more for less service…
Tuesday, April 23, 2013
The hackathon event in Asbury Park comes with a $1,000 prize for the winning app developer.
Calling all app developers: your tech skills are needed to help restore the Shore business community. The Jersey Shore Comeback-a-thon will bring coders together at Cowerks in Asbury Park on Saturday for a 24-hour hackathon sponsored by Wall-based software company Marathon Data Systems. During a hackathon, developers have a set period of time to create a computer program or application that fits the event’s theme. With the Jersey Shore Comeback-a-thon, Marathon Data Systems wants to bring the area’s best tech minds together to build an app to support local businesses impacted by Superstorm Sandy. “When you get talented, creative people together, you never know what they’re going to come up with,” said Eric Farr, vice president of …
Casino Pier signed a contract with Weeks Marine, and said the process of removing the roller coaster from the ocean could take a few weeks
The Jet Star roller coaster, which has become a staple of the damage wreaked on the Jersey Shore by Superstorm Sandy, may soon be removed from the Atlantic Ocean, according to an NJ.com report. Casino Pier, the owner of the amusement that was dumped in the Ocean by Sandy, signed a contract with Weeks Marine, a dredging and stevedoring company based out of Cranford, to remove the coaster in less than a month, the article said. A date has yet to be set for the roller coaster’s removal, the article said, and Toby Wolf, spokesperson for Casino Pier, would not disclose the cost of the contract or estimated cost of the work. The process of performing a hydrographic survey of the Jet Star below the ocean as well as dismantling and removing the …
Friday, April 19, 2013
South side, near Shark River
A home in the process of being raised after seeing widespread Hurricane Sandy flooding has collapsed. The Belmar Boulevard home's roof now sits asunder and its walls flattened after the home collapsed earlier this week. The house is on the south side of Route 35 near the Shark River Harbor in Wall Township. The ranch home was one of the first in the neighborhood to be raised. The street currently lies in a FEMA map flood zones affecting residents around the Shark River from Route 35 an reaching westward to Marconi Road. Property will be unable to receive flood insurance, or be unable to afford the premiums, unless they raise their homes above flood levels, according to newly adopted flood maps drawn by the Federal Emergency Management …
40.176404
-74.042588
1700 Belmar Blvd, Wall Township, NJ
/articles/home-collapses-on-belmar-boulevard
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Wednesday, April 17, 2013
Nuclear power plant staff are in close contact with law enforcement officials
Security measures have been enhanced at Oyster Creek Generating Station following the explosions at the Boston Marathon that claimed the lives of three and wounded more than 170 people. “We are at a heightened state of security awareness,” spokesperson Suzanne D’Ambrosio said, adding that the measures taken are not unusual for public facilities. “Our security team stands at the ready as they do 24/7/365 to protect the plant, the public and our employees.” D’Ambrosio could not say what the increased security includes or how long it will last. “We stay in close contact with law enforcement officials and we’re closely tied to what’s going on,” she said. Janet Tauro, an anti-nuclear advocate for Grandmothers, Mothers and More for Energy Safety…
Monday, April 15, 2013
Marina owner: test run through bay showed few problems, though precautions should be taken
Getting ready to take the boat out, but worried that debris from Sandy may make it difficult? GoBoatingNJ.org may help. Since Hurricane Sandy came ashore in late October, reports of unprecedented destruction to area marine facilities have left boaters wondering if there will be a boating season in 2013, said Ed "Skip" Harrison, who is the owner of Baywood Marina, Brick Township, and Board Member of the Marine Trades Association of New Jersey. The www.goboatingnj.org initiative was launched to address these concerns by providing coverage of the restoration efforts taking place each day by state, federal and municipal agencies as well as scores of volunteers and organizations. The Go Boating NJ campaign highlights - through on-the-water …
FEMA video focuses on how one home survived while neighbors did not
Ed Wright's home, now, is one of few standing. But prior to Hurricane Sandy, it was one of the few standing on pilings on his street in Mantoloking. So many others were at ground level, and a recent FEMA video implies it was the foresight to raise the home years ago that helped Wright's home see less damage from Hurricane Sandy. In a dramatically damaged area of Mantoloking, FEMA found one homeowner's house had survived, and produced a video about Wright's plans years ago to raise his house, and how it impacted the home during Hurricane Sandy. FEMA's video, titled "Elevation Helps a Home Survive Hurricane Sandy," features interviews with Wright and pictures before and after the storm.
Friday, April 12, 2013
Little Egg Harbor shellfish beds opened Friday
The last of New Jersey's shellfish beds that have been closed since Superstorm Sandy struck Oct. 29, 2012 are in the process of reopening. Shellfish beds in Little Egg Harbor opened Friday morning at sunrise and beds in Raritan Bay will open at sunrise April 15, the state Department of Environmental Protection said Friday. With the resumption of shellfish harvesting in both areas, all of New Jersey's shellfish beds that were once closed as a result of Superstorm Sandy will now return to the classifications they had before the storm hit at the end of October, the department said in a statement. The vast majority of the waters of Barnegat Bay had been reopened to shellfishing over the past several months, though a small section of Little Egg…
Sunday, April 7, 2013
Demolition continues on Seaside Height's Funtown Pier, which was destroyed during Hurricane Sandy.
Just a short walk down the debris-littered beach in Seaside Heights, work is underway on Casino Pier. Despite the presence of a roller coaster still sitting in the ocean, positive reconstruction has been going on for several months. Officials even say they plan on reopening a portion of the pier, along with some rides, by Memorial Day. It's a different story at Funtown Pier. The amusement rival remains a wreck following Hurricane Sandy's arrival at the resort town in late October. The pier, which arguably received more damage during the storm than Casino Pier, is in disarray. Large portions of it have been removed, though what remains will also likely have to go. The pier's most prominent feature, its Ferris wheel, sits half on its …
Walter McInerney
3:19 pm on Thursday, May 2, 2013
JCPL deserves nothing. I saw the elec guys waiting for the tree cutters -> poor mgt. JCPL & FEMA were not coordinated, nor was JCPL coordinated with the out of state assistance. I saw guys who wanted to work, standing around. Why would politicians support JCPL? more ›